“Russia is a very big power, and they’re not”: Trump presses Zelenskiy to cut a deal with Putin ahead of Washington talks

His comments came after a summit in Alaska with Vladimir Putin, where the Russian leader was reported to have demanded further Ukrainian concessions.

According to the Reuters report, Trump later told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Putin had offered to freeze most of the current front lines if Kyiv agreed to cede all of Donetsk — a key industrial region Moscow has long sought to control. Zelenskiy rejected the demand outright, the source said.

Russia already holds around one-fifth of Ukraine, including nearly three-quarters of Donetsk province, which it first invaded in 2014.

Despite Ukraine and its European allies insisting on a ceasefire as a precursor to peace talks — a position the US had also backed until now — Trump said he and Putin agreed that a peace deal should be pursued directly, without an interim truce.

Friday’s Alaska summit marked the first US-Russia meeting since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The three-hour session ended without a ceasefire, but Trump insisted the talks had shifted the focus toward a broader settlement.

“It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times do not hold up,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Moscow welcomes Trump’s stance

Moscow is likely to welcome Trump’s shift, having consistently argued that only a comprehensive settlement can resolve the conflict.

Still, the Kremlin acknowledged that reaching one would be difficult as positions remain “diametrically opposed.”

According to the Reuters report, Putin told reporters after the talks: “I would like to hope that the understanding we have reached will allow us to get closer to that goal and open the way to peace in Ukraine. We expect that Kyiv and the European capitals ... will not attempt to disrupt the emerging progress.”

For Putin, the Alaska summit itself was a diplomatic win.

Ostracised by most Western leaders since the start of the war, he had only a week earlier faced the threat of fresh sanctions from Trump.

Trump-Zelenskiy tensions resurface

Trump signalled that another round of negotiations is planned: “After Monday’s talks with Zelenskiy, if all works out, we will then schedule a meeting with President Putin.”

Zelenskiy is due in Washington on Monday for talks that will also involve European leaders.

The visit comes against the backdrop of a bruising Oval Office meeting in February, where Trump and Vice President JD Vance publicly confronted him in front of cameras.

In a Fox News interview, Trump revealed that he and Putin had already discussed land transfers and security guarantees for Ukraine and had “largely agreed.” “I think we’re pretty close to a deal,” he said, before adding: “Ukraine has to agree to it. Maybe they’ll say ‘no’.”

Pressed on his advice for Zelenskiy, Trump said: “Gotta make a deal. Look, Russia is a very big power, and they’re not.”

Zelenskiy demands lasting guarantees

For Kyiv, conceding territory remains off the table. Zelenskiy has repeatedly stressed that Ukraine’s constitution prohibits surrendering internationally recognised land, and that Donetsk strongholds like Sloviansk and Kramatorsk are vital to halting deeper Russian advances.

He has also underlined the need for binding international security guarantees to prevent future invasions.

“Ukraine needs a lasting peace, not just another pause,” Zelenskiy said, adding that he had received “positive signals from the American side” on security commitments.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the debate over guarantees the most significant outcome of the Alaska summit, comparing the idea to NATO’s Article 5 clause of collective defence.

“The starting point of the proposal is the definition of a collective security clause that would allow Ukraine to benefit from the support of all its partners, including the USA, ready to take action in case it is attacked again,” she said.

Putin, who has previously opposed the presence of foreign forces, nonetheless agreed with Trump that Ukraine’s security must be “ensured.”